On the night of June 17, 2022, two-year-old Averianna "Averi" May was being watched by her mother's boyfriend, Christopher S. Hoover, 24, at his Staunton, Virginia residence while her mother was away for a weekend getaway. Hoover was supposed to watch Averi and her younger half-sibling for a few hours before taking them to a babysitter but instead beat the toddler. He later went to his mother's home in Augusta County, where a 911 call was made. The unresponsive child was transported to Augusta Health and then airlifted to UVA Health in Charlottesville, where she died on June 18, 2022, while being held by her mother. Medical examination revealed significant brain injuries, head trauma, bruised ribs, a collarbone bruise, hip bruise, bruising on an ear, swelling over an eye, and crush injuries — all inconsistent with Hoover's claim that the child fell from a bed. The cause of death was determined to be complications of multiple blunt force injuries, including shaking and blunt force trauma. Hoover pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and child abuse and was sentenced to 30 years in prison.
Contexts/Conditions
Is there any mention of child drug ingestion or overdose?
Is there any mention of a drowning incident (either intentional or accidental)?
Is there any mention of a firearm incident?
Is there any mention of inappropriate supervision (e.g., child wandered off and drowned)?
Is there any mention of inflicted injury? (e.g. slapped, punched, kicked, choked)
Multiple documents describe inflicted injuries. The news articles (Documents 1 and 2) state: "Hoover ended up beating the toddler" and describe injuries including "significant brain injuries and observable head trauma, along with numerous other injuries such as a head abrasion, bruised ribs, swelling over one of her eyes, bruising on an ear, a collarbone bruise and a hip bruise" as well as "crush injuries." The prosecutor stated "the toddler's cause of death was from shaking and blunt force trauma." The fatality report (Document 4) confirms "Cause of death is complications of multiple blunt force injuries."
Is there any mention of malnutrition, starvation, or dehydration?
Is there any mention of medical neglect?
Is there any mention of a motor vehicle crash or incident?
Is there any mention of a murder-suicide incident?
Is there any mention of outdoor elements (including hot car deaths)?
Is there any mention of prenatal substance exposure (including fetal alcohol syndrome or neonatal abstinence syndrome)?
Is there any mention of sexual abuse?
Is there any specific mention of shaken baby or abusive head trauma?
The news articles (Documents 1 and 2) explicitly state: "the toddler's cause of death was from shaking and blunt force trauma." They also describe "significant brain injuries and observable head trauma" and that the toddler was "bleeding from the brain." These details are consistent with shaken baby/abusive head trauma.
Is there any mention of prolonged abuse or torture (including restraints, captivity)?
Is there any mention of an unsafe sleeping environment?
Individuals Involved
Was an adoptive parent or guardian involved in the death?
Was a biological father involved in the death?
Was a biological mother involved in the death?
Was a day care worker, babysitter, or nanny involved in the death?
Was a female paramour or friend involved in the death (e.g., girlfriend, stepmother)?
Was a foster parent involved in the death?
Was a male paramour or friend involved in the death (e.g., boyfriend, stepfather)?
The fatality report (Document 4) identifies the abuser as "stepparent." The news articles (Documents 1 and 2) state that "The toddler, who was not Hoover's child," and describe how Hoover was watching the children while "the toddler's mother was away for a planned weekend getaway." Perry said "Hoover texted his girlfriend and asked if he could keep the children for the evening," indicating the toddler's mother was Hoover's girlfriend. This establishes Hoover as the mother's male paramour functioning as a stepparent.
Was another adult relative involved in the death? (e.g., grandfather, aunt)
Was a sibling involved in the death?
Child Characteristics
Was the child adopted?
Was the child homeschooled (including "cyberschooling") or taken out of school?
Was the child in foster care at the time of the incident?
Was the child living with relatives at the time of the incident (but not parents)?
Is there any mention of a neurological developmental child disability? (e.g., autism, intellectual disability, nonverbal)
Is there any mention of a physical child disability? (e.g., feeding tube)
Is there any mention of prematurity or low birthweight?
Is there a history of child protection reports prior to death (for this child or siblings)?
The fatality report (Document 4) explicitly states: "Between 2017 and 2022, the family was the subject of four Family Assessments due to concerns of physical neglect and physical abuse of the decedent and older siblings. Services were provided." This establishes a clear history of child protection reports prior to the death involving both this child and her siblings.
Does the child have a history of foster care (but not in care at time of incident)?
Is there a history of a sibling death (separate incident from this death)?
Parent/Caregiver Factors
Was an adult charged or arrested for the child's death?
The news articles (Documents 1 and 2) state: "He was arrested the same day" (referring to the day he spoke with police, two days after the child died). Document 3 (WHSV) confirms: "Christopher Hoover was arrested in June 2022 and was charged with second-degree murder." He pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and child abuse and was sentenced to 30 years in prison.
Is domestic violence by the parent/caregiver referenced?
Is there any mention that the death occurred in a temporary shelter or while homeless?
Is an intellectual disability of the parent/caregiver referenced?
Is the mental health of the parent/caregiver referenced?
Is a history of arrests or criminal charges for the parent/caregiver referenced?
Is substance use by the parent/caregiver referenced?
Notable Details
The fatality report (Document 4) reveals that "Between 2017 and 2022, the family was the subject of four Family Assessments due to concerns of physical neglect and physical abuse of the decedent and older siblings. Services were provided." While Q133 captures the existence of prior reports, this detail further reveals that child protective services had provided services to the family on multiple occasions, yet the child was still killed — suggesting a potential systemic failure in the child welfare system. Additionally, the WHSV article (Document 3) notes that Dr. Robin Foster "described the injuries as injuries someone would get in a rollover car crash," underscoring the extreme severity of the abuse inflicted on a 2-year-old child.
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